Texas, Georgia continue strong runs in 2023 CFB recruiting class

Texas football and Georgia have both been rolling in commitments lately and both landed a pair of blue-chippers this weekend. Here’s what it means. 

It’s been a good month or so for the Texas football program on the recruiting trail and it really started with the commitment of five-star QB Arch Manning and it hasn’t really stopped.

Earlier this week, Malik Muhammad committed to the Longhorns, giving Texas football another top-50 overall recruit according to the 247 sports composite rankings.

Well, the Longhorns picked up another commitment this weekend and it was somewhat unexpected as Texas wound up winning the recruitment of four-star offensive tackle Payton Kirkland, a recruit trending to Michigan State not long ago.

Kirkland is out of Orlando and he’s listed at 6-foot-6, 345 pounds. He’s also ranked No. 271 overall in the 2023 class according to the 247 composite rankings and Kirkland is now the 14th blue-chip commitment (4-star or better) in 2023 out of 20 total and that’s exactly how the Longhorns will need to recruit if they are going to win in the SEC going forward.

Georgia football also adds multiple 4-stars

Another top-five team in the 2023 recruiting rankings that added multiple four-stars over the week was Georgia football — another contender for the No. 1 overall spot.

Texas is ranked fourth in the 247 team rankings for 2023, but Georgia football has now moved up to No. 3 after the commitment of offensive lineman Kelton Smith.

Smith is ranked 218th overall in the 2023 class and is out of Columbus, Georgia. He was also the second big man to commit this week as D-lineman Jamaal Jarrett (No. 180 overall) pledged to the Bulldogs earlier.

Yet, the most impactful addition to the 2023 class came on Saturday via the commitment of Joenel Aguero, who is ranked 34th overall in the 247 composite rankings out of Massachusetts.

Aguero is the second-highest ranked commitment in Georgia football’s third-ranked class right now and the safety is No. 3 at this position.

The Bulldogs currently have 14 blue chips committed to their class right now out of 17. That’s fewer commitments than both Notre Dame and Ohio State — the only teams leading them — and as we get closer to signing day, it won’t be surprising to see UGA keep rising.